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TORONTO, Ont. –Ontario carriers are beginning to express some optimism heading into the third quarter, according to the latest Ontario Trucking Association (OTA) Business Pulse e-Survey.

The Q3 survey suggests that fleets are divided on their expectations for the third quarter, with 32% expressing pessimism and virtually the same percentage expressing optimism. (In the previous survey, 43% were pessimistic and 27% were optimistic).

However, despite the renewed sense of optimism, 35% of respondents were still “unsure” about prospects for the next quarter.

Fifty-two per cent of respondents said they felt the Canadian economy had bottomed out, which was more than double the 25% who felt that way last quarter, according to the survey. In Ontario, however, 54% of carriers felt the economy had yet to bottom out. But in the previous survey, only 19% of respondents had felt the Ontario economy had reached its worst, so the 46% that feel that way now is a marked improvement.

Where the US economy is concerned, 66% of fleet respondents said they foresee further problems. Most carriers don’t expect an immediate improvement in north-south volumes, according to the OTA survey.

However, the 26% of carriers that say they expect southbound volumes to improve over the next six months is significantly higher than the 16% who feel further deterioration is in store, another positive change from previous surveys. •

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